Northern Explosion

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From lifestyle to grocery-anchored to mixed-use, and located in Northeastern markets both large and small, the following 12 profiles detail projects that are making—or will make—a difference in the markets they serve.

Some of the projects are highlighted with a small computer-mouse icon; be sure to check them out online at www.chainstoreage.com/realestate, where you’ll find additional information, including leasing contacts.

Ridge Hill will be the first major lifestyle center in the New York metropolitan region. Located in Westchester County between Interstate 87 (New York State Thruway) and the Sprain Brook Parkway, the project will be easily accessible to residents of Westchester County and Manhattan. The project is outdoors, and features a town-like setting with a landscaped town square. Small retail stores, such as apparel and housewares, will mix with restaurants, a cinema and large-format retail.

Shoppes at Highview is a redevelopment of the existing Stamford, Conn., Lord & Taylor department store. This single-tenant project will be transformed into a 300,000-sq.-ft. destination retail center located at the confluence of High Ridge Road and Long Ridge Road in Stamford, providing unparalleled access to the Stamford downtown and Merritt Parkway. With this ease of access, Shoppes at Highview will draw from a 10-mile radius—an area containing some of the highest incomes in the United States.

When complete, the project will contain a 190,000-sq.-ft. Lord & Taylor showpiece, a 60,000-sq.-ft. Whole Foods Market and 50,000 sq. ft. of other fine retail shops. The site will be designed to take advantage of the topography and incorporate architectural features of the area inclusive of fieldstone walls and lush landscaping.

It might seem that Nashua, N.H., has just about every retail format possible—its status as a tax-free shopping haven draws shoppers from around New England to a variety of centers. However, it has lacked the latest development type, the open-air, apparel-oriented center now giving new life to retail across the country. That will change in spring 2009, with the grand opening of Nashua Landing, the first lifestyle center in the state.

Nashua Landing will offer 600,000 sq. ft. of better apparel, restaurants, entertainment (including a stadium-seat cinema), and the first Whole Foods Market in the state. The result will be an open-air Main-Street center that will regularly draw visitors from around the region as well as the affluent local population.

The center will have three entrances off Daniel Webster Highway, giving it superior access and convenience. The center’s trade area includes towns with some of the highest average household incomes in New England, including Hollis, with an income of $127,647. The 2006 trade area population of 486,385 is expected to rise to 497,793 by 2011.

Its Main Street layout, too, will be new to the state, creating a new mini-downtown. Nashua Landing’s wide sidewalks and traditional architecture will emulate the great towns of New England—but with convenient parking, elegant landscaping and an attention to detail second to none.

Blue Mountain Commons

Location: Susquehanna Township, Pa.Size: 125,000 sq. ft.Developer: Cedar Shopping Centers, Inc.Major tenants: 98,000-sq.-ft. Giant Supermarket, PNC Bank, StarbucksStatus: The municipal entitlement process is expected to be completed by late 2007 or early 2008. Major site work and demolition of existing buildings are under way, and the project’s completion is anticipated for spring 2009.

The proposed Blue Mountain Commons is located on the north portion of the east shore of the Harrisburg, Pa., market. Fronting PA Route 39, Linglestown Road, the development site is the only commercially zoned property in an area of affluent residential neighborhoods. Demographically, the Linglestown Road corridor is an excellent location—in fact, one of the best in the greater Harrisburg metro area.

Levittown Town Center is a landmark open-air shopping center conveniently located in the heart of Levittown, Pa. The town and the shopping center were built by Levitt & Sons in 1952 and regarded as the model of modern American suburbia. The Town Center was the hub of the Levittown community, where residents shopped, dined and congregated for community events. DLC is completely redeveloping the 468,675-sq.-ft. center, adding national and regional retailers that will ultimately restore the original old-time charm infused with today’s shopping amenities.

Located just 11 miles north of the City of Boston, Shops at Saugus will greatly enhance the local shopping experience in the Town of Saugus and neighboring communities. The new Trader Joe’s will feature 11,000 sq. ft. of grocery space, as well as offer an extensive array of domestic and imported foods and beverages—and will be joined in the center by a 24,216-sq.-ft. PetSmart and the area’s newest La-Z-Boy Furniture store. Shops at Saugus will also feature two merchants on outparcels—Starbucks and Qdoba Mexican Grill—and local restaurant chain Border’s Café will build a 7,350-sq.-ft. restaurant. There is also approximately 8,500 sq. ft. of second-floor office space above the retail shopping center.

Southpointe Town Center

Location: Metro Pittsburgh Size: 800,000 sq. ft.Developer: A joint venture with Cullinan Properties, Ltd., and Horizon PropertiesMajor tenants: In lease negotiations with major retailers, entertainment and upscale dining restaurantsStatus: Design is in process and the center is scheduled to open summer 2009.

Southpointe Town Center is the crowning final phase of the 800-acre Southpointe development, home to nearly 3 million sq. ft. of upscale office and commercial space and another 500,000 sq. ft. coming soon, along with thousands of new homes, a new championship golf course and approximately 900,000 people in the trade area. The trade area includes some of the best residential communities in the South Hills of Pittsburgh, including Mount Lebanon, Upper St. Clair and Peters Township.

The vibrant new lifestyle center was conceived in the spirit of a historic neighborhood that will be the destination shopping experience for customers working and living in the Southpointe development and surrounding area.

Westwood Station

Location: Westwood, Mass.Size: 4.5 million sq. ft., including 1.35 million sq. ft. of retail, 1,000 residential units, 1.5 million sq. ft. of office and two hotelsDeveloper: New England Development; Cabot, Cabot & Forbes of New England; Commonfund Realty, Inc.Major tenants: In lease negotiations for approximately 90 stores and restaurantsStatus: Groundbreaking late 2007; retail completion late 2009

Westwood Station is an exciting, new idea for Greater Boston and a new vision for retail in New England, combining fashionable retail and dining with state-of-the-art office and lifestyle residential—all in a vibrant, pedestrian-friendly setting. In the heart of an affluent and populous consumer market, the 135-acre site has direct access to Route 128 and Interstate 95 and to the Amtrak/MBTA Commuter Rail Station at Route 128. Westwood Station will soon be a regional shopping destination and a project so powerful it will change the way people shop in Greater Boston!

ARC Properties and Millennium Homes bring an affordable urban lifestyle to Garwood, N.J., with The Mews at Garwood. The joint-venture development, which is to be completed in two phases, will consist of 160 residential units plus 60,000 sq. ft. of Main Street retail that is located directly across the street from a 70,000-sq.-ft. Shop Rite. The recently completed Phase 1 is leased to several tenants that include a restaurant, Washington Mutual, Rosie’s Wine Cafe and Coffee Beanery. The second phase launched construction in the fall of 2007 and is to be completed by fall 2008.

Located on two adjacent corners between North Avenue and Chestnut Street, the project serves as the “gateway” into Garwood from the neighboring towns. With its close proximity to the North Avenue train station and Garden State Parkway, The Mews will be a downtown center for consumers looking for the Main Street experience.

Plymouth Meeting Mall is home to more than 120 quality retailers and will add a 200,000-sq.-ft. lifestyle component, featuring a 65,000-sq.-ft. Whole Foods Market and other dynamic lifestyle retailers, along with themed restaurants (see “Major tenants” below) to reinvent itself to serve a dense market area of nearly a million homes and 5.2 million sq. ft. of office space and an estimated 100,000 workers within a five-mile radius. The mall is located at one of the most heavily trafficked intersections in the greater Philadelphia area.

The Shops at Riverhead, located on Route 58 in Riverhead, N.Y. at the end of the Long Island Expressway, neighbors The Tanger Outlet Center, Target, The Home Depot, Best Buy, Borders Books, Linens ’n Things and many other top-flight retailers. At approximately 538,000 sq. ft., The Shops at Riverhead’s proposed anchors consist of Kohl’s, Costco, Circuit City and PetSmart. The developer is also in negotiations with an array of junior anchors. The two restaurant pads are already under agreement with Chili’s and Olive Garden.

The Shops at Riverhead is a unique project, because—short of Tanger Outlet Center—it is the largest development in the area. The outlets bring in an excess of 12 million people each year and is one of the highest-producing outlet centers in the nation. Its location across the street from The Shops at Riverhead provides an excellent site for a new and exciting shopping center development.